Property gains tax, agency commission, notary fees and early mortgage repayment. What really stays in your pocket once the sale is done.
This is the heaviest item and the one people plan for least. It applies to the difference between the sale price and the purchase price, increased by the lasting investments made in the property. The rate depends on the canton and, above all, on how long you have owned. The longer you have held the property, the lower the tax, sometimes falling sharply beyond twenty or twenty-five years.
Keeping the invoices for value-adding work, an extension, a new kitchen, a heat pump, lets you reduce the taxable gain. Hold on to them carefully, they are worth money when the time comes to sell.
If you go through an agency, its fee usually sits between two and three per cent of the sale price, plus VAT. In return, the agency handles the estimate, the presentation, the viewings and the negotiation. On a well-positioned property, a good agent pays for themselves through the price they achieve and the time they save you.
Notary fees and land register entry costs come with any transfer of ownership. How they are split between seller and buyer varies from canton to canton and by local custom, it is settled in the deed.
One last point people often forget, early repayment of the mortgage. If you clear a fixed-rate loan before its term, the bank can claim an exit penalty, sometimes a large one depending on how rates have moved. Worth checking before you fix a sale date.
The sale price is not what you pocket. To find your net figure, start from the price, take off the gains tax, the commission, your share of the deed costs and any mortgage penalty. Beginning with a sound estimate of the value is the first step, everything else is worked out from there.